Three UN peacekeepers wounded in attack on Central Africa base

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Fighters from Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces and the Central African Republic’s former Seleka rebels on Tuesday attacked a UN base near the Sudan border wounding three Zambian peacekeepers.

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The UN Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) “strongly condemned” the dawn raid in the town of Am Dafock targeting one of its bases in the impoverished, volatile nation.

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It said three Zambian peacekeepers were wounded, one of them seriously.

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Valentine Rugwabiza, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, said the attacks on the blue helmets “may constitute war crimes under international law”.

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Ramadan Abdelkader, the sub-prefect of Am Dafock, told AFP: “Former Seleka fighters and elements of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) coming from Sudan attacked the bases,” adding that 22 people had died.

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“We are requesting as many reinforcements as possible from the authorities,” he said, adding that those seriously wounded were being evacuated on UN flights for treatment.

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Abdelkader added that later “Russian allies” staged air attacks on the rebels, without specifying whether this intervention had made it possible to regain control of the town.

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Am Dafock is a strategic point on the border between the Central African Republic and Sudan.

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It regularly faces incursions by armed groups operating on both sides of the border, against a backdrop marked by the war in Sudan since April 2023 and the presence of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the frontier regions.

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